Trusts to pilot device that helps detect deteriorating patients

Friday, October 26, 2018

UCLPartners Academic Health Science Network is supporting four trusts to take part in the set-up phase for a pilot of RespiraSense, the world’s only continuous and motion-tolerant respiratory rate monitor.

Respiratory rate is the earliest and most sensitive indicator of the deterioration in a patient’s condition, yet it is often poorly monitored. RespiraSense, a device supported by the NHS Innovation Accelerator, enables clinical teams to accurately monitor a patient’s respiratory rate, enabling them to identify patients whose condition is deteriorating up to 12 hours earlier than usual.

UCLPartners is working with PMD Solutions, the creators of RespiraSense, to offer trusts within our partnership the opportunity to pilot this technology during an eight-week set-up phase. Following a review of their progress during this period, successful trusts will be selected to go through to the full pilot receiving a free six-month supply of RespiraSense monitors.

The trusts taking part in the pilot are:

University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust (Chase Farm Hospital)

Whittington Health NHS Trust

Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals

Respiratory rate is a key component of a new National Early Warning Score ‘NEWS2’which is set to become the standard for identifying patient deterioration in England by April 2019.

Dr Sara Lock, who will be leading participation of Whittington Health in this work said: “Continuously improving the quality of care we provide to our patients is of paramount importance to our organisation. We’ve just launched a trust-wide education programme about the importance of monitoring vital signs using the NEWS2 system. Respiratory rate is a key component of the NEWS2 score so having the opportunity to set up a pilot of this innovative technology is very exciting.

“If we go on to participate in the full pilot we’ll be able to gain vital experience in using respiratory rate monitors and learn how they can best be deployed and integrated into routine use. The hope is that using this technology can ultimately improve outcomes for our patients.”